One of Two Individuals to Receive NABC Peer Award
KANSAS CITY, Mo. --- The National Association
of Basketball Coaches will present its 14th annual
Outstanding Service Award at the Division III meeting of
this year’s NABC Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana on April
3, 2010. The award has been presented annually since
1997 and is given to coaches whose actions “inside and
outside the lines” of coaching have distinguished them as
valuable members of their communities.
Two extremely deserving coaches will be recognized at the
convention. This year’s honorees are Mike
Beitzel recently retired head basketball coach at Hanover
College in Indiana and Bill Leatherman recently
retired head basketball coach at Bridgewater College in
Virginia.
Dr. Mike Beitzel began his basketball career as a four year player
at the College of Wooster. He ended his career after 20 years
at the helm of Hanover College’s men’s basketball
program, guiding the Panthers to a 370-181 record. Beitzel
guided Hanover to six conference championships, including five
consecutive titles from 2001-2005. His squads earned five
berths in the NCAA national tournament. Beitzel was honored as the
Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) coach of the year
five times and he was also honored as the National Association of
Basketball Coaches (NABC) Midwest District coach of the year three
times. Mike was also extremely active in the Lide White Boys
and Girls Club of Madison. He also founded the Courtside Club
which was very active in the campus community involving speakers
and special events. Mike and his wife LuAnn have two grown
daughters, Emily and Michelle and currently reside in Mission,
Texas.
Bill Leatherman completed his 23 year head coaching career with the
most wins in Bridgewater College men’s basketball
history. Leatherman finished his career at Bridgewater with a
335-262 record. During his tenure, the Eagles earned three
NCAA tournament berths, two conference regular season titles, and
one Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) tournament
championship. Leatherman was also named ODAC Coach of the
Year three times and was NABC South Region Coach of the Year four
times. In 2006 Leatherman was honored with the National
Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Guardians Award for
Advocacy, one of the top honors a college coach can receive.
Bill and his wife Nancy have a son Jeff and daughter Kristen and
currently reside in High Point, N.C.
Also being presented his award this year in Indianapolis is 2009
recipient Jim Smith of St. Johns College in Collegeville,
Minnesota. Jim was unable to attend last year’s award
presentation due to a serious leg injury occurring just prior to
the convention in Detroit.
The NABC is extremely pleased to honor these gentlemen who,
throughout their careers, have been outstanding coaches, great
teachers, and significant leaders in their communities. They have
done a terrific job in communicating strategies and techniques to
their respective teams, distinguished themselves as wonderful role
models to their players and associates, embody the spirit of
coaching.
For additional information, contact: Pat Cunningham, email: pcunning@trinity.edu,
Phone:(210) 999 -8275
This release is courtesy of the National Association of
Basketball Coaches.